RECORDINGS

Kate Campbell with Spooner Oldham

For the Living of These Days (Large River Music)

August 18, 2006|By Louis R. Carlozo

With a voice as sublimely majestic as a peach tree swaying in incessant summer heat, Kate Campbell delivers an album that testifies to God's love with tenderness, wonder and power. You might recognize Oldham--who plays a rich array of keyboards here, including Hammond B-3 and Wurlitzer electric piano--as one of the legendary Muscle Shoals musicians. ("Days" was recorded at Fame Studios, home of the Muscle Shoals sound.) Teaming without a backing band, Campbell and Oldham conjure an alchemy that's palpable and thick as a Faulkner narrative; the hymn "God of Grace and God of Glory" gets an unexpected jolt from a minor-key turn, while Myron LeFevre's "Without Him" weds Oldham's Wurlitzer and Campbell's dusky singing into a gospel lullaby. Also welcome here: Campbell's call for tolerance on songs such as "Terrible Mercy" and "Would They Love Him Down In Shreveport."